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Monday, 28 July 2014

We have been trying out some products from Love Boo. Love Boo sell Mummy skincare, Baby skincare and Hair care products that are gentle on skin and contain no nasties!

Here's a little about the company...

"Love Boo's philosophy is to create affordable, luxurious products that are effective and kind to all skin types, and that look fabulous too" Love Boo are passionate about creating target specific skin care suitable for babies and women both pre and post pregnancy.

Love Boo source ingredients used in tried and tested remedies and traditions such as Ginkgo Biloba from the oldest species of tree and Argan Oil, one of the rarest oils in the world and combine them with botanical extracts to create UK-made products with modern benefits. Love Boo treats, nurtures, soothes and makes even the most stressed-out skin feel soft, smooth, moisturised and special.

We make sure we use the highest quality ingredients possible. We refuse to include any harsh ingredients in our products this means there are -

We loved the smell of this product! It also was slightly thinner than some other body wash which was great as it meant it was easy to apply and rinse off of peanuts skin as it just glided on and lathered up really well.

The price of this product is £7.99 for 250ml. This may seem a little pricey however this is a really high quality product and will last for such a long time as you only need a tiny amount each use!

The second product we tried was the Love Boo soothing bottom butter.

The Love boo soothing bottom butter is midwife-recommended, it now comes in a handy flip-top jar, It is packed with some of nature’s kindest ingredients to help protect baby’s delicate skin from nappy rash. Cotton seed oil, Tahitian Monoi and lavender oil work to soothe and moisturise while zinc oxide forms a barrier. It also helps soothe, sore skin due to nappy rash.

Helps keep Baby’s delicate skin free from nappy rash

Soothes and moisturises

Stays put to protect through the night

Peanut doesn't really suffer with any nappy rash but I do occasionally like to add a bottom cream to protect her little bum. This bottom butter smells lovely and left peanuts bottom lovely and soft!

The price of this product is £8.99 for a 50ml pot and again although it sounds quite expensive this product contains great ingredients and you really do only need a small amount per application so it really lasts.

We love the Love Boo products and if you want to find out more about the brand or their products you can find then on..

Oh My Gosh!! Time is going so quickly!! My little boy has left nursery now and is heading onto his journey of school and peanut is now 7 weeks old!

Peanut has changed so much in these last few weeks. She is such a little character now and is awake more and more every day. She is full of smiles and happily chirps awake to herself (these sounds literally melt my heart they are so cute lol).

James is still totally in love with his little sister and is so protective of her and loves telling everyone all about his little sister.

Peanut had her second home visit today from the health visitor and now weighs a whopping 10lb 11oz!! We have our 6 week check at the doctors tomorrow so we will get to find out how tall she is (I've always thought she seemed tall but they haven't done any height measurements until the 6 week check here).

Shes a right little milky monster and is taking 5oz of milk every 2-3 hours in the day but is sleeping through they night only waking once for a feed (although last night she went from 11pm - 6am!).

"Look how big I am now mummy!!"

I thought I would share some pictures of Peanuts ever changing funny faces and a few smiles too!

I love these 2 little kiddiwinks so much! My heart melts and bursts with pride at them both.

Im so proud of how well James did at nursery and how excited he is for school, He has learnt so much in his time at nursery and I know hes going to do fab in school too!

My heart melts every time I get a cheeky smile from peanut or she coo's as she nestles into my chest.

Tuesday, 22 July 2014

Today I had a tear in my eye as I took a little longer driving James to nursery, I took a little longer walking across the car park and up the stairs to his nursery door, That's because today marked the end of another stage in James journey and signified the start of a whole new part of it.

Today was James last day at nursery!

As I dropped him off I stayed a little longer at the door with a tear in my eye as I watched him run in the door greeting all his friends as they shouted his name to come and play. Giving the teacher a massive hug and sitting down on the carpet for registration.

I know that today he will be leaving all these friends and teachers and although I am sure we will still see a few of his close friends again a lot of them will be moving on to school and making new friends just as James will be.

James has loved nursery and has really thrived since starting. There has never been a day he has not wanted to go and always go bounding into the nursery class with a smile and leaves with the same smile (all be it a little more tired and usually covered in paint, sand or mud lol!). He has come on so much since starting nursery and can now confidently write his own name, count up to 20 and write letter and numbers all by himself and lots more. As well as because so much more courteous and polite.

When he walked into nursery on his first day he walked in my little baby I was so nervous about leaving him and how he would settle in and I left with a tear in my eye full of nerves for him, would he enjoy it and would he make friends. But today as I picked him up I walked out with a tear in my eye for a whole new reason! I didn't need to worry all that time ago he has done all the above and so much more!! As he walked out of nursery today he had blossomed from my little baby to this beautiful, confident and clever little boy.

I am so proud of him!

I am really sad about him leaving nursery and all that he will be leaving there but I am also so excited for the new journey he is about to start in school.

I really cant thank all the staff at his nursery enough for all the time, effort and hardwork they have put into my little boy because without their help, time, care, and energy my little boy wouldn't be the little boy he is today!

So although I stood at the door with a tear in my eye today it was a happy tear that he is about to start a new exciting road in his journey and he has been given the best possible start from nursery!

How did you feel on your little ones last day at nursery or school? xXx

Monday, 21 July 2014

With the weather getting warmer it means I have been trying to get James drinking plenty of fluids in the heat to keep him hydrated, So when we received some drinks to try out from the lovely people at the Appy Drinks company we couldn't wait to try them out.

healthier more affordable. They believe inkids before profit, so we create our products with the best Appy chefs using the most innovative natural ingredients, such as stevia, to ensure we arealways approved by Mums and Loved by Kids. You can be assured that whenever you pick up a product with the Appy logo on, it is guaranteed to be low in sugar, low in calories, free from preservatives and always full of 100% natural goodness"

I do try and keep an eye on what James is drinking and what his drinks contain so we usually just give him water but lets face it water can be boring (especially for a child who see's lots of colourful childrens based drinks on the shelves and in most places we visit!) So we were really excited about trying out the range of drinks from Appy thats because Appy drinks contain 50% less sugar and calories than other juices because they use natural stevia instead of sugar.

This flavour had a lovely fresh flavour that really quenched your thirst. You could really taste the summer berries with a subtle hint of apple.

Ninja Turtle Apple and Blackcurrant flavour fruit nectar drink.

This flavour was James favourite! I think thats partly because its the ninja turtle design and hes a huge fan of ninja turtles but he also said he liked the flavour. I often find with apple and blackcurrant drinks they taste too sweet but this wasn't the case with this drink it was a lovely flavour, sweet but not too sweet.

Spongebob Orange flavour fruit nectar drink.

This was my personal favorite. It has a lovely natural orange flavour that was refreshing and a lovely alternative to orange squash.

Of course I wouldn't recommend using these drinks as a complete alternative to water! But these drinks make a fab treat and the handy sized cartons make them perfect to pop into your handbag or picnic bag for a day out.

I loved the quirky designs with the instantly recognisable popular TV characters of the drinks and these made them really appealing to James.

All of the flavours tasted fresh and delicious.

Appy Food and Drinks also have a funky website which you can find HERE the website also has a section with recipes, games and a create section which has lots of fun craft activities including making your own peppa pig!

Appy also has a fun app (this can be found on their website above) which you can download to your smart device and then you can customize images, watch videos and enter competitions!

The Kick 'n' Play gym is suitable from Birth-18 months and has 4 different position settings.

There is the lay & play mode where baby can kick at the piano keys and look up at a toy-filled arch. This mode is suitable from birth.

You also have the option of tummy time mode as the toys can be brought down to the mat via re-positionable loops and baby can enjoy looking at themselves and discovering reflections in the large mirror while also grasping at the variety of toys in front of them.

There is also the sit & play mode the as the piano swivels up, enabling baby to comfortably sit and play the piano, for lots of musical fun in a comfortable sitting position.

In the fourth mode, the piano can be used separately from the rest of the play mat when baby is more mobile. The piano part features a large handle to make carrying and taking the piano along easy to do for musical fun on the move!

The Fisher-Price Kick 'n' Play piano gym is one of the top 10 Fisher-Price toys that are most loved by parents.

I can really see why this is the case! The baby gym offers excellent value for money for a high quality product that is built to last. The kick 'n' play gym is a versatile product that offers a variety of playing options and therefore lasting the child much longer than many other baby gyms/ play mats as this offers the 4 different play modes!

Peanut isn't quite old enough to try out the bottom 2 modes yet but has thoroughly enjoyed the lay and play and tummy time modes and particularly loves the bright colours. the flower mirror and making lots of noise kicking her legs on the piano!

The toys are really cute and I particularly love that they are removable as it means they can be taken off and popped into the changing bag if we are heading out. It also means they can be swapped around on the arch if your child tends to look to one side or they can be re-positioned around the base of the mat for tummy time fun.

The Fisher-Price Kick 'n' Play gym is priced at £44.99 which I think is a great price for something that has a variety of modes and therefore will last your child for a long time! It is available to buy from Argos, Smyth's, Tesco Direct, Asda Direct and Toys R us.

The lovely People at Fisher-Price have also given us 1 of these Kick 'n' Play piano gyms to give away!!

So how would you like to win one of the Blue/Unisex designs seen HERE?

Well to enter simply complete the rafflecopter form below! A lucky winner will be chosen at random using Rafflecopter on 11/08/2014!

Saturday, 19 July 2014

The boys requested a chocolate topped pavlova so I made a Cadbury's crunchie pavlova which is crunchy on the outside, soft and chewy on the inside and topped with fresh cream and crunchie's

Heres the recipe...

Ingredients -

For the Pavlova

4 medium egg whites

250g caster sugar

1 tsp of vanilla extract

1 tsp of white wine vinegar

1 tsp of cornflour

For the topping -

300ml double cream

1 tsp of vanilla extract

1 tbsp caster sugar

Your topping of choice, We chose 2 Cadbury crunchies but you can use anything you like! I also love to top mine with fresh strawberries and raspberries!

Method

Firstly Preheat the oven to 140°C/fan 120°C/ gas and line a baking tray with grease-proof paper (I have used foil in my pictures as I ran out of grease-proof paper however it is best to use grease-proof paper). (You may wish to draw a 8-9 inch circle into the grease-proof to help later when spooning your mixture onto the tray).

In a large clean bowl use an electric handheld whisk to whisk up your egg whites. They should look soft and fluffy.

Next slowly add in your caster sugar a little at a time whilst continuing to whisk. Its really important you add the caster sugar a little at a time. Continue whisking until the mixture forms stiff peaks (if you can hold the bowl over your head without any dripping out its perfect lol!)

Next add your vanilla extract, cornflour and white wine vinegar and gently fold into the mixture.

Now Spoon your mixture onto your prepared baking tray (If you drew the circle into the grease-proof earlier ensure you keep the mixture within this circle). Once the pavlova is on the tray in should be around 8-9 inches in diameter and around 2-3 inches tall).

Place the pavlova into the oven to bake for 1 hour until firm. A trick I like to use is once the hour is up do not open the oven door instead switch of the oven but leave the pavlova inside to cool down gradually and remove once the oven has completely cooled down!

For the topping -

In a bowl add your double cream, vanilla extract and caster sugar and whisk until cream is much thicker and firmer.

Tuesday, 15 July 2014

The lovely people over at Sticky and Sweet kids recently sent peanut over some very cute shoes to try out and here is out review.

Firstly here is a little about the company ...

"Sticky & Sweet Kids shoes bring class and a touch of nostalgia to infants’ feet. Designed by footwear designer, Julie Macklin, Sticky & Sweet Kids soft soled shoes are inspired by all things vintage, but with a playful, modern twist. Not only do they look great, they are made from top quality leather and are developed with an infant’s growing feet very much in mind.

Designs for boys and girls are all handmade and unique in their own way. No pair will be exactly the same and you can be assured that they have been made lovingly and to a very high standard. Great for everyday wear or as a Baby Shower or Christening gift, Sticky & Sweet creates exclusive baby shoes, in limited runs, but at surprisingly affordable prices."

The shoes come beautifully presented in the tiny shoe box (as seen above) and wrapped in tissue paper.

The shoes were so soft and came in a pretty and classic design with contrasting blue loop and the back and a beautiful floral design inside.

Here is peanut showing off her new shoes!! They are still a little big for her (shes only 1 month old and these are 0-3 so totally understandable!). You can see that they have a lovely wide fitting so plenty of room for growing feet and are so lovely and soft!

These would make a lovely every day shoe. The design would also make them a lovely christening or special occasion shoe!

The shoe is fastened by a velcro strap and so they are easy to get on and off (essential when you are trying to get shoes onto a wriggling baby lol!)

They have a variety of shoe styles on their website for Boys and Girls and they are all so cute!

These retail at just £13.50 and FREE UK delivery!! Which I think is an excellent price for such a pretty and well made baby shoe!

You can find out more about Sticky and sweet kids and check out their full range of Boys and Girls shoes on their website here ... www.stickyandsweetkids.co.uk

Monday, 14 July 2014

James attends nursery 4 days a week and loves to change his backpack all the time depending on the latest craze or character he is into. When the lovely people at Becky + Lolo offered James a backpack to try out and review he was really excited!!

We received the Wildkin toddler backpack in the design Action vehicles which was instantly a hit with James as he loves to spot fire engines and police cars whilst we are out and about. The backpack design is really lovely it features lots of different emergency vehicles (James favourite was the police motorbike lol!) in lots of vibrant colours on a light blue background.

The backpack is made from durable, scotch guarded canvas, it features adjustable and padded straps for comfort and ease of wearing and a handy hanging loop.

This backpack is called pack N snack by the manufacturer as it features a front zipped pocket fully insulated and food safe to store snack, packed lunches.

Measures approx' 29.5cm (h) x 24.5cm (w) x 9cm (d)

James recently took the backpack on a nursery leavers trip were he had to wear it a large proportion of the day. He said it was really comfy and the teachers confirmed he had happily and comfortably carried the backpack all by himself all day. This is a big thing for James as he usually moans about wearing bags so it confirmed to me it must be super comfy to wear! I think this is also helped by the straps which are slightly wider than a normal backpack straps and are padded for extra comfort.

James is 4 (he will be 5 in october) and around 3ft 10 inches tall and this bag was a great fit for him with plenty of room to adjust the straps to make it slightly smaller or bigger!

We have had lots of compliments of the bag, I think that's probably be cause the design is so eye catching and vibrant it really stands out.

The bag has plenty of room and on his recent day trip he managed to fit a large lunchbox, 2 carton drinks, 1 water bottle, a change of clothes and there was still some room left! The bag also has a handy side pocket which we used to store a carton drink in so it was at easy reach if he wanted to grab a drink.

I really like the fact the backpack has a little space inside the bag for you to fill out the childs, name, address and contact details which is always handy to have especially with children.

This backpack is priced at £19.99 which we think is a very reasonable bag with an eye catching design and very high quality made bag. They even do a matching lunch box!

You can find more bag designs (and many more products) on there website here ...

Friday, 11 July 2014

100% Bamboo Baby Towels are very soft and absorbent, perfect for a baby's delicate skin.Bamboo baby towels come in a lovely white trim, pink trim and a blue trim on a white towel.

The chosen blend of 50% Bamboo and 50% Cotton makes these towels luxurious and soft for baby's delicate skin.

Cotton offers loft, while the naturally occurring properties of bamboo make them:

Very Absorbent

Quick Drying

Anti-bacterial and Anti-fungal

Require only a cool wash up to 40˚C

Environmentally sensible as bamboo is 100% Sustainable

The size of the towel is 90cm x 90cm and the towel thickness is 650gsm.

When the towel first arrived the first thing i noticed was the vibrant pink edging! It was a really lovely colour and made the towel pop. The next thing I noticed was just how soft the towel was!! Then I realised how big it was!! Although this towel is for peanut and is described as a baby towel my 4 year old boy had a little try and it fit him!! (and hes really tall for his age).

Here are James and Peanut trying out the hooded towel.

and here is peanut laying on the towel just to show how big the towel really is!!

I was a little worried that the colour of the vibrant pink edging would run into the white of the towel during a wash but as they only require a 40˚C wash this is not an issue and the towel came out of the wash looking as good as new with no colour run at all.

Peanut looks so snugly in hers and it didn't dry out her skin at all or feel rough against her new delicate skin and I was confident enough to wrap her up in it and let her stay like that for a while as she was so cosy in it.

These Bamboo baby hooded towel are priced at £13.50 which I thought was an excellent price and they really are worth the money. The towel is still soft now after several washes and still looks brand new!

My name is Mummy. It used to be Jess but then I had children now I'm known as Mummy or Mum!

You see before I had children I was Jess, I had my own identity, my own name and I didn't think anything of it.

That was until I had my little boy at 19 I was still quite young and suddenly I was no longer Jess I was Mummy, I was James mummy and my occupation was Mummy. Im not going to lie at first I felt a little lost I felt like I had lost my identity behind a cloud of mummy duties and I felt like I wasn't "me" anymore I was just James mum.

However I soon came to realise this was not the case! Yes everyone still calls me mum (even the hubby when he is around the kids!) and Yes when people refer to me its "oh yes that's James mum" and yep my occupation is still Mummy but I LOVE that word, I LOVE being mummy!

See I now realise Mummy isn't just a name its like a badge of honour!

Being a mum is the best, most rewarding job I've ever had, Yes it hard and sometimes I cant wait for the day to end so I can crawl into bed but isn't that the same with any job? Its just that with my job there is no desk or deadlines, no commute or uniform. There is however Smiles (and tantrums), Laughter, Adventure, Learning and exploring (for all of us not just the kids). Yes my job is hard its 24/7 and there are no "holidays" I cant just book a week off when I feel like it but that's ok because I'm Mummy and I love my job!

So that's why my name is Mummy! Because its not just a name its my life now. When I look at my children I know that my name is mummy because I grew and nurtured these 2 little people, They need me, They depend on me, I offer then security and hugs and kisses on demand.

The day I gave birth I turned into Mummy and it was the best change I could ever make!!

I am James and Evelyn's Mummy and Proud!

How did you feel when you first became mummy? Did you find it hard to get used too?

Thursday, 10 July 2014

You may have noticed we have been reviewing the Degustabox on the blog recently (You can view last months box review HERE).

I loved receiving our box last month its really exciting awaiting the parcel to see what goodies will be inside this month. This month was no exception as and the end of the month approached I eagerly awaited the delivery of my next Degustabox. I was not left disappointed!

As usual the box contained a good mix of meal, drink and snack items.

Here are the goodies that were included in our box this month...

Grabbed out of the box first by the eagerly awaiting 4 year olds hands was the Shaken Udder Milkshake. We were sent the strawberry flavour and I was very much assured by James it was delicious! I loved the carton size as it was perfect for little hands and didn't easily spill when squeezed (as all kids do lol). We will definitely be keeping an eye out for this brand in the future!

Next up was the Elizabeth Shaw amaretto flutes. We tried out the Elizabeth Shaw dark chocolate crunch flutes last month and loved them so I was looking forward to trying a different flavour. I was not disappointed they were delicious and had a slight marzipan taste to them!

Also included in the box was this Bear nibbles Alpha Bites cereal. I hadn't seen this brand before so was intrigued to find out a little more about it and was pleasantly surprised to find out they contain no refined sugar or salt, Are low GI, Naturally high in calcium and are made from 5 tasty grains! Im not a big breakfast eater (what with running around after James, peanut and trying to get hubby to work on time) I quite frankly struggle to find time lol! But I did like the crunch these had and they were a big hit with James!

Instantly spotted by hubby was the addition of the Estrella Beer included in this months box. I personally dont drink beer but hubby does and this was a brand he hadn't tried before so was intrigued to try it out. With the world cup on he had the perfect excuse to sit on the sofa with a cold beer watching the football! He said the beer was really nice. It had a really good flavour and wasn't to gassy.

So hubby had the beer that means I got the Lambrini!!! Included in this months box was one of Lambrini's new summer flavours Strawberry. After going nearly a whole year without any alcohol whilst being pregnant with peanut I have really enjoyed being able to sit down on an evening with a nice glass of something and this was delicious! It has a lovely sweet taste and you can really smell and taste the strawberry flavour.

I was really intrigued when I found these to breakfast drinks in the box. I hadn't head of the brand before or the idea of a breakfast "drink" and as I mentioned above I rarely find time to have breakfast so these may be an ideal alternative. I haven't actually got around to trying them yet but I like the classic flavours and the handy bottle size that I could quickly grab or pop into my bag as im heading out the door.

Also included was this snack pack of Perfectly pineapple from Urban fruits. This is just fruit that has been gently baked and packed into a handy snack pack. I was expecting something quit hard but these have more of a chewy texture and are quite sweet. James was unsure at first but soon came to like them and I could see they would make a great addition to lunch boxes and as they come in a handy snack pack perfect to keep in your bag for when the kids suddenly claim they are starving whilst your out and about lol! These also come in Mango and strawberry flavours.

I really enjoy baking with James (although I haven't really managed to do it much since peanuts arrival). So I was delighted to find another Dr Oetker product in this months box (Last month had the baking release spray). I usually use Vanilla essence when cooking so it will be a real treat to have some proper vanilla pods to use when I next get to baking. This comes in a handy little grinder and can be set to a coarse or fine grind.

Finally in our box was this Microwaveable Basmati and Wild rice from Veetee. I hadnt heard of this brand before and in all honesty we don't use a lot of microwaveable rice however the flavour sounds really nice. I think this would be really handy to have in the cupboard as it would make a great addition to a quick midweek meal if you are running late and have to dash out the door!

As you can see lots of great products on our box this month again! Some brand I had heard of other not and this is why I really love these type of boxes as they can introduce you to brand you may otherwise not had picked up and tried.

The boxes are priced at just £12.99 and there is no commitment to continue if you decided not to after your first box. This is a great price and the products you receive always far outweigh the cost of the box!